Last Friday, October 4th, the Danish Minister for Food Agriculture and Fisheries, Karen Hækkerup, opened Denmarks largest event against Food waste  United Against Food Waste, Europes first event where the entire value chain was represented. 6,000 people and leading stakeholders were gathered on the Town Hall Square of Copenhagen to make a joint stand against food waste.

The event was initiated by the largest Danish consumer movement against food waste, Stop Wasting Food (Stop Spild Af Mad), under the international FUSIONS umbrella, gathered more than 6,000 visitors. They could all enjoy the lovely autumn weather - with full bellies made of well-prepared delicious surplus food.
6,000 of people were fed with free surplus food, which otherwise would have been discarded. The Danish Minister for Food, Agriculture and Fisheries stated that up to one third of the world’s food is being wasted.

CEO of Denmark’s largest agricultural organization Danish Agriculture & Food Council, Søren Gade, added that we can only solve the problem of food waste if the entire food value chain makes a joint stand. Many of the speeches agreed with the title of the event – United Against Food Waste: It’s a joint responsibility to minimize the 540.000 tons of yearly Danish food waste.

The top chef Bo Jacobsen argued in his speech that good food demands good food culture – also when one wants to use the resources properly, which chef Frank Jakobsen from Unilever Food Solutions agreed on. He gave examples on how much money a typical canteen can save by minimizing their food waste.
The international food waste expert, Dr. Silvia Gaiani, served good advice from Italy, where Last Minute Market’s uses food which otherwise would have been discarded. Both Denmark’s biggest retail chain Coop and discount chain REMA1000 explained their best practice examples to an engaged audience.

Secretary General of the Nordic Council of Ministers, Dagfinn Høybråten, handed out the first prize of 5,000 Euros to Latvian Winner of the Nordic-Baltic Think.Eat.Save Ad Competition about food waste, Marta Zarin-Gelze. Celebrity DJ Master Fatman delivered smooth lounge music throughout the day.
For the first time in Europe, an event against food waste gathered the entire food value chain. Leading stakeholders from the entire food value chain participated in the ‘United Against Food Waste’ event at the Copenhagen Town Hall Square, where they handed out delicious soups, juices and small hot dishes to 6,000 people. Among the stakeholders were Danish Agriculture & Food Council, Coop, REMA 1000, Unilever Food Solutions, Alfred Pedersen & Son Tomatoes, The Nordic Council of Ministers, Restaurant Rub & Stub, ReGastro, Timm Vladimir’s Grab'n'Cook, and more.

Nothing was wasted during the day. In collaboration with REMA 1000, Project Homeless gathered the remaining surplus food in favor of homeless people in Copenhagen. The organic waste from the event was collected by Daka ReFood and converted into biogas.

“We are extremely pleased with the outcome of the ‘United Against Food Waste’ event and we warmly thank all participants and volunteers,” says Selina Juul, Founder of Stop Wasting Food movement Denmark and initiator of the event. “It is already planned to repeat the ‘United Against Food Waste’ event in Denmark and internationally.”